EO Seattle Hosts Alchemy 2012 Regional Conference

Nearly one year in the making, and with ceaseless hard work from a dedicated group of EO Seattle volunteers, EO Alchemy boasted a learning line-up of 26 speakers, 15 workshops, and a special Ignite session of curated crowd-pleasing original presentations by attending members.

Special speakers included Michael Gerber, whose E-Myth book series is considered gospel for entrepreneurs; Jeff Hoffman, CEO of Priceline; and Erik Wahl, whose live painting demo and dynamic lecture on re-awakening creativity brought down the house on the first day.

Our line-up also featured high-impact inspirational speakers including Dandapani; Warren Rustand; and John O’Leary, childhood burn victim whose moving story of triumph over adversity left not a single audience eye dry.

Careful attention was paid not only to the learning content, but also to timing and delivery. Our learning schedule incorporated hour-long keynotes, panel discussions, TED style 17-minute talks, workshops, and sufficient breaks, ensuring that attendees received maximal value with enough downtime and variety to maintain energy levels. Check out all the presentations here:

Not content to wow with learning content alone, the Alchemy committee crafted stellar after hours activities, including a swanky catered cocktail reception with live music hosted in an EO sponsor’s architecturally renowned building overlooking the Puget Sound, an organized pub crawl to pre-selected choice downtown locations (with an accompanying custom designed guide map), a Dine Around where we sent hand-picked groups to eight distinct top-rated Seattle restaurants for four-course meals with wine pairings (followed by a dance party at a premier Seattle ultra-lounge), and a blow-out party at the Experience Music Project (preceded by an exclusive and branded transport on the Seattle Monorail) in which we rented out the entire EMP Sky Church and museum. The EMP party was catered by Wolfgang Puck and had live Rockaraoke entertainment that made even the shyest EO members drop their inhibitions. Many reported having the time of their lives.

Our final Saturday night party took place in an exclusive South Lake Union loft, decked out with custom decoration and lighting design and themed to coincide with the evening’s city-wide Halloween celebrations. Attendees showed up in full costume and/or were provided costumes on arrival, making it a night to remember for all.

In the midst of all the learning and fun, we also incorporated an Adopted Forum session - with the format provided by one of the EO community’s most beloved coaches. This, at the very outset of the event, brought attendees to new levels of “instimacy” that grew as the event proceeded. One of our goals for Alchemy was to foster lasting close bonds between attending members. The Adopted Forum session, along with a social event application that we custom integrated specifically for Alchemy, kept everyone close and connected before, during, and after Alchemy took place.